President Trump and King Abdullah Host Press Conference to Discuss… Obama?

Imagine a world where President Trump answers every question about his policies not by offering any details on them at all, but simply by pointing to how bad he thought Obama’s policies were. Having trouble imagining that world? No worries, just look up Trump’s White House press conference with King Abdullah of Jordan from Wednesday. Trump’s responsibility to deal with North Korea? “That responsibility could’ve been made a lot easier if it was handled years ago.” How about Iraq? “The past administration were [sic] saying: ‘We will be attacking in 4 months’, and I said: ‘Why are they doing that?” Got a policy for Iran? “The Iran deal made by the previous administration is one of the worst deals I have ever witnessed.” Okay, how about just anything in the world you want to talk about? “I inherited a mess, whether it’s the Middle East, whether it’s North Korea, whether it’s so many other things, whether it’s in our country, horrible trade deals, I inherited a mess.” Well, Mr. President, we absolutely appreciate that the world is a messy place with complex problems, but we already know what you think of the Obama administration, and you’re clearly charting a new course right now. Perhaps it’s time to let go of the past and address forward-looking questions about the Middle East with more forward-looking specifics, we’d certainly like more on that. As for King Abdullah, he cut through the distractions and stayed on topic, reminding the world of, among other things, the Arab Peace Initiative offered to Israel in exchange for Israeli compliance with its legal and human rights obligations. But don’t hold your breath, the initiative has been rejected by Israel for more than a decade. Who doesn’t have a partner for peace, again?